Despite some fans thinking an early EFL Cup exit wouldn't have been the end of the world, Liverpool are still on track for a record 11th title thanks to Wednesday’s win. Cody Gakpo continued his strong Cup form with two goals, while Luis Diaz sealed the victory despite Brighton’s responses from Simon Adingra and Tariq Lamptey.
Next up, Liverpool face a tough November, with big Champions League matches against Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid, and a quarter-final trip to Southampton in the EFL Cup.
The Reds missed a chance to stay at the top of the Premier League after their tie with Arsenal, but they can reclaim first place if they outdo Manchester City's result against Bournemouth. Anfield has been a fortress recently, with Liverpool winning their last four home games and scoring multiple goals in each.
Brighton, meanwhile, benefited from some errors by Liverpool's Jarell Quansah in Wednesday’s game, but their defense faltered again, as it did against Wolves last month. Although they led comfortably at first, Wolves fought back to draw, with Matheus Cunha’s deflected goal capping a chaotic finish.
Under manager Roberto De Zerbi, Brighton sits a commendable sixth in the league, bringing plenty of excitement for neutral fans. Their last seven games have seen a total of 30 goals, with Brighton both scoring and conceding at least twice in most of those matches. Though Wednesday’s loss marked only their third defeat in the last 10 meetings with Liverpool, one of those losses was a 2-1 defeat at Anfield last season.
INJURIES & SUSPENSION
Liverpool welcomed back Conor Bradley, who played the full 90 minutes in their midweek EFL Cup win over Brighton. However, Harvey Elliott (foot), Diogo Jota (abdominal), Federico Chiesa (fitness), and Alisson Becker (hamstring) remain sidelined. Manager Arne Slot doesn’t expect any of them back before the international break, giving a firm “no” when asked if Jota would be ready within two weeks.That said, Slot still has plenty of choices and is set to bring back key players like Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Darwin Nunez, and Alexis Mac Allister to the starting lineup. It’s also possible that Kostas Tsimikas could start at left-back over Andy Robertson, who played against both Arsenal and Brighton.
For Brighton, their defense felt the impact of Lewis Dunk’s absence on Wednesday after he injured his calf during warm-ups for the Wolves match. His availability for Saturday is still uncertain. On the bright side, Matt O’Riley and Joao Pedro are back in training and could feature, though Solly March (knee), James Milner (thigh), and Adam Webster (thigh) are still out, with Yankuba Minteh (muscle) also questionable.
Georginio Rutter, cup-tied on Wednesday, is back and may team up with Danny Welbeck in attack, while Jack Hinshelwood, who recently returned from a minor injury, might rejoin the midfield lineup after coming off the bench midweek.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Liverpool possible starting lineup:Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Mac Allister, Gravenberch; Salah, Szoboszlai, Gakpo; Nunez
Brighton & Hove Albion possible starting lineup:
Verbruggen; Veltman, Van Hecke, Igor, Estupinan; Adingra, Hinshelwood, Baleba, Mitoma; Rutter, Welbeck
EXPERT PREDICTION
Liverpool 2-1 Brighton
With Hurzeler’s Brighton, you can usually count on goals from both sides, but their midweek scoring success may not mean much when facing the Premier League's toughest defense. Slot is expected to bring back his best lineup, even with Bayer Leverkusen on the horizon, and Liverpool should have little trouble getting back to winning ways in the league.
